3DS to be relaunched with right analog stick?

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So far the 3DS has not lived up to the hype of previous Nintendo handhelds. A slow start is not a disaster as the DS can attest, but Nintendo dropping the price just a few months after launch and then apologizing to 3DS “Ambassadors” with the promise of 20 games next month, is definitely not what Nintendo intended when it was developing the device.

A price drop coupled with some much-needed new games could be enough to get things back on track, but there’s a rumor coming from French-language site 01net that some bigger changes are going to happen with the 3DS hardware next year.

We stress this is a rumor, but it comes from a site that leaked the Wii U two months before Nintendo officially unveiled it.

Apparently the 3DS is set to get an update in the form of a $10 right analog stick attachment. Nintendo is currently figuring out how to attach this to the existing 3DS on the right side below the buttons. The problem is it needs to tightly grip the case so as not to fall off as well as somehow plug into the 3DS.

The thinking behind the second stick is it would allow more games to be ported from other hardware that have controllers with dual analog sticks, so PS3, 360, PS Vita. It also opens the way for new types of game to be created specifically for the hardware that need the finer control of two sticks.

The second part of the rumor involves Nintendo rethinking the 3DS because 3D isn’t working out. Parents aren’t sure about letting their kids use it for fear of poor eyesight, and 2D games are allowed on the system which shows even Nintendo aren’t 100% on the idea otherwise they’d insist developers use it.

The redesign would steer away from pushing the 3D aspect and may even have a new name. In other words, the redesign would become more DS-like with two 2D displays and most likely include the new right analog stick by default.

This does seem a bit too radical to me, but then who expected the Wii U to have a touchscreen as a controller? Certainly not me.

Nintendo is known for regularly updating its portable hardware, but it’s usually refining what’s already there rather than a drastic change. I really don’t think the 3D screen would disappear due to the number of games that take advantage of it. But saying that, they all work without 3D so it is possible a new 3DS could do without it.

The right analog stick addition begs the obvious question: why wasn’t it there from day one? Did Nintendo really forget all about twin sticks and how much PSP fans yearned for them? I also can’t see an easy way to attach a stick to an existing 3DS without some bulky clip, can you?

If Nintendo really is bringing out a 3DS update (3DSLite?) then I think it will be a real test for Nintendo fans. An expensive device with not many games, followed by a big price drop soon after launch, and then a redesign some months later? It’s a bit unfair, and I hope I’m not in a position where I have to decide to buy another 3DS next year.